Federation Council terminates member Malkin's mandate
MOSCOW. March 27 (Interfax) - The Russian Federation Council terminated its member Vitaly Malkin's mandate on Wednesday.
Malkin tendered his resignation on March 25, apparently under pressure of information circulated by prominent opposition activist Alexei Navalny indicating that Malkin had Israeli citizenship and owned undeclared real estate abroad.
The Federation Council commission for control of its members' incomes gathered on Wednesday to scrutinize the allegations at the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper's request, which Federation Council Chair Valentina Matviyenko had received last week.
However, Yury Vorobyov, the commission chairman, said on Wednesday that, considering Malkin's voluntary resignation, the commission would not examine his file.
Malkin himself claimed at the commission meeting on Tuesday that he fell victim to "a provocative and dirty campaign" initiated by his unscrupulous foreign partners among "emigrants in Canada, who libeled and robbed me."
Malkin acknowledged that he did acquire Israeli citizenship in 2004 but later renounced it after Russia adopted a law forbidding public officials to have foreign citizenship.
He said he was stepping down so as "to not tarnish the chamber with this information dirt."